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Famed 18th and 19th century English novelist, Jane Austen, wrote many novels in her lifetime. "Northanger Abbey" was one of the first novels she finished, and while she sold the manuscript in 1803, the novel was not published (posthumously) until 1817. "Northanger Abbey" is similar to many of Jane Austens novels. It involves a lot of relatively wealthy families socialising with each other, usually at balls and other genteel parties. The protagonist of "Northanger Abbey" is a seventeen-year-old young woman, Catherine Morland, who is obsessed with Gothic novels. When the novel begins, she is visiting Bath with a pair of family friends. While in Bath, she meets two different families: the Thorpe family and the Tilney family..."Nothanger Abbey" is the story of this young woman and her dangerously sweet nature, innocence, and sometime self-delusion. Though Austens fallible heroine is repeatedly drawn into scrapes while vacationing at Bath and during her subsequent visit to Northanger Abbey, Catherine eventually triumphs, blossoming into a discerning woman who learns truths about love, life, and the heady power of literature. The satirical novel pokes fun at the Gothic novel while earnestly emphasising caution to the female sex.

Calato il sipario, al termine di uno spettacolo teatrale, lintera popolazione di Napoli sparisce come inghiottita da un incantesimo. Di tutti gli abitanti, un uomo e una donna, rimasti soli a teatro, scoprono di essere gli ultimi sopravvissuti di un misterioso sortilegio. Dopo liniziale spavento, i due compagni di sventura si scopriranno padroni di una citta che dorme, nellincanto di un mercoledi notte. Racconto breve senza pretese.

More than a century after its first publication, "Robbery Under Arms" remains as fresh and enthralling as when it originally appeared in serial form in the Sydney Mail. Related in first person by bushranger Dick Marston as he awaits his appointment with the gallows, the novel vividly evokes his turbulent years as cattleduffer and bushranger in company with his father Ben, brother Jim and the gentleman adventurer, Captain Starlight.Boldrewoods novel remains one of the greatest novels in Australian literature.

Écrit d’un seul trait durant l’été 1887, "Pierre et Jean" est le quatrième roman de Maupassant, une œuvre naturaliste ou réaliste-psychologique. RésuméLes Roland, modestes joailliers parisiens retiré

Originally published in 1861, Silas Marner" (AKA "Silas Marner: the Weaver of Raveloe), is the third novel by George Eliot. The novel tells the story of a weaver who turns from a life of greed to a life of generosity. This story has a strong redemptive theme - it is a tale of loyalty, forgiveness, and adoptive love.Wrongly accused of theft and exiled from a religious community many years before, the embittered weaver Silas Marner lives alone in Raveloe, living only for work and his precious hoard of money. But when his money is stolen and an orphaned child finds her way into his house, Silas is given the chance to transform his life. His fate, and that of Eppie, the little girl he adopts, is entwined with Godfrey Cass, son of the village Squire, who, like Silas, is trapped by his past. "Silas Marner", George Eliots favourite of her novels, combines humour, rich symbolism and pointed social criticism to create an unsentimental but affectionate portrait of rural life. George Eliot was the pen name of Mary Ann Evans, who wanted to be anonymous due to her long affair with George Henry Lewes. She did not want her readers to focus on the rumours surrounding her love life. She also wanted to be taken seriously as a writer, which was not always possible for a woman during that period.

Looking Backward, 2000-1887 is a science-fiction novel written by Edward Bellamy in 1887 that tells the story of his utopian, socialist vision of America set in the year 2000.By the time "Looking Backward, 2000-1887" was published, America had come through Civil War, economic depression, and violent uprisings over the formation of unions. Businesses were becoming more powerful by monopolising industries and controlling wealth. High immigration numbers meant there was an abundance of workers who were largely happy to have any job and wage. Many Americans were struggling and had little opportunity to change their situations.In the novel, Bellamys main character, Julian West, was transported to the year 2000 when these problems were no longer going to be a burden. His utopia is one in which production is nationally owned and all goods are distributed equally to the citizens. In short, Bellamy had created a world in which all of societys ills could be solved through socialism. As he writes from the perspective of Dr. Leete, Wests future guide, The producers of the nineteenth century were not, like ours, working together for the maintenance of the community, but each solely for his own maintenance at the expense of the community...

"Aarons Rod" was completed in 1921 and was censored by both D. H. Lawrences American and English publishers.Written in the years following World War I and set in postwar England and Italy, "Aarons Rod" questions many of the accepted social and political institutions of Lawrences generation, and raises issues as valid for our own time as they were for his. The novels hero is an Everyman who flees the destruction in England and his failing marriage and who, like Lawrence himself, becomes absorbed in discovering and understanding the nature of the political and religious ideologies that shaped western civilisation. Aaron Sisson, a union official in the coal mines of the English Midlands, find his marriage is breaking down. He is also depressed at finding himself in a society which cannot adapt to the aftermath of the First World War, and often finds solace only in his flute playing. One day he walks out on his wife and children to seek a new life and decides on impulse to visit Italy, hoping to become a professional musician.Going via London to the continent via London, he pays his way through his flute playing. On the journey he meets people who show him what is possible in his life. In Florence he finds himself at home in intellectual and artistic circles, where he can argue about politics and leadership issues, and he also has an affair with an aristocratic lady.Gradually he sees the bitter divisions in post war Europe, as the Fascists and Socialists are increasingly at odds with one another. While drinking with his friends in a cafe one day a bomb explodes, with grim personal consequences for him in particular.

"Mansfield Park" is a novel by Jane Austen published in three volumes in 1814. In its tone and discussion of religion and religious duty, it is the most serious of Austens novels.While "Mansfield Park" appears in some ways to continue where "Pride and Prejudice" left off, it is a much darker work, which challenges the very values (of tradition, stability, retirement and faithfulness) it appears to endorse. Adopted into the household of her uncle, Sir Thomas Bertram, Fanny Price grows up a meek outsider among her cousins in the unaccustomed elegance of Mansfield Park. Soon after Sir Thomas absents himself on estate business in Antigua (the familys investment in slavery and sugar is considered in the Introduction in a new, post-colonial light), Mary Crawford and her brother Henry arrive at Mansfield, bringing with them London glamour, and the seductive taste for flirtation and theatre that precipitates a crisis.

IN PARTE TRATTO DA UNA STORIA VERA.Il Libro:Puo esistere unamicizia tra un uomo e una donna? LAutore affronta in questo libro il dibattuto tema narrando la storia di Chiara e Michele.I due protagonisti si conoscono da giovani lavorando entrambi nello stesso Studio Legale. Tra i due nasce subito un rapporto che va ben al di la della semplice conoscenza lavorativa. Michele sente di provare unattrazione nei confronti di Chiara, ma non si fa avanti perche lei e gia impegnata sentimentalmente.Trascorsi cinque anni le strade di Chiara e Michele si dividono e cessa anche la loro frequentazione.Dopo 25 anni, del tutto casualmente, Michele consultando la rubrica del cellulare scopre che possiede ancora il numero telefonico di Chiara. Lo assale un desiderio incontrollato di risentirla, cosi la chiama e i due decidono di rivedersi. Con grande gioia di entrambi scoprono di non essere cambiati e che lamicizia, sopita per tanti anni, puo tornare a unirli.Accade pertanto che i loro incontri diventino un appuntamento fisso settimanale che va avanti per sei mesi. Ma il destino gioca loro un brutto scherzo. Accade infatti un evento che pone fine ai loro incontri e da quel momento il loro rapporto diventa tormentato.Il finale e drammatico e segnera per sempre lamicizia tra i due protagonisti. Altri libri scritti dallautore:Il segreto di GiuliaDuplice vendettaLincubo del babau - Una storia di stalkingThriller TrilogyNessuna identita - Frammenti di memoriaPantaclo - La ProfeziaPantaclo II - La ProfeziaPantaclo III - La ProfeziaPantacloCrimeIn gabbiaPantaclo (II Edizione)Crime (II Edizione)In gabbia (II Edizione)Chi sei, Kate?

"The Prince and the Pauper" is a fable or fairy tale for young readers written in the 19th century by Samuel Clemens, under the pen name of Mark Twain. The novel has become an essential masterpiece of the American literature."The Prince and the Pauper" tells the story of two boys in 16th century England who were born on the same day and look identical, but are unrelated. One, named Edward Tudor, is a prince and the other, named Tom Canty, is a pauper. Edward Tudor was a real person in history, but Tom was invented by Twain. Through unusual circumstances, Edward and Tom meet and exchange clothing, which leads to everyone confusing the identities of the two boys...

"The Red Room", written in 1879 by August Strindberg, is one of the biggest classics of Swedish literature.A funny, satirical look at 19th century bourgeois attitudes, "The Red Room" presents a loosely-connected group of counter-cultural artistic types and has them confront their counter-cultural and progressive ideals with those of conservative, mainstream society. Most of them are poor (well, poor bourgeois types), making ends meet by pawning each others possessions and taking on hack work thats beneath their dignity. Their goal is to be recognised as master-level artists by the stodgy mainstream, without having to give up their anti-mainstream ideals.Strindberg wrote funny observations of people and attitudes, and the situations he throws at his characters are frequently entertainingly absurd.

The most feared world in the galaxy: The Well of Furies. From this planet, the godlike Ulltrians waged war on all life among the stars. Long thought extinct, the Ulltrians have returned. Now all the galaxy is in danger. Humanity faces extinction.Amir Tarkos is the only human in the Predator Corp, the most elite military force in the galaxy. With his partner Bria, a bear-like carnivore, Tarkos is given a dangerous and difficult mission. Tarkos and Bria must locate the World Hammer, a pair of co-orbiting sunless planets that are the last refuge of the Ulltrians. But to find the World Hammer, they first must brave the dangers of the Ulltrian homeworld, The Well of Furies.To save Galactic civilization, Tarkos and Bria will have to work with a team of strange aliens and artificial intelligences, explore the perilous ruins of an ancient moon, dare the depths of an ocean that engulfs a dark planet, and fight a fierce battle in the ice rings of burning world. Can one human being save the galaxy?The Philadelphia Free Press writes of The Predator Space Chronicles,"They are impossible to put down and filled with exciting action in an alien-filled galaxy that humans have just joined."Well of Furies is a stand-alone novel, but it is also the first third of the trilogy Evolution Commandos. In addition, it forms part of the ongoing Predator Space Chronicles, which are told in novels and short stories.EVOLUTION COMMANDOS: WELL OF FURIESNovel54,000 wordsBOOKS IN THE PREDATOR SPACE CHRONICLES:1. Well of Furies2. World Hammer3. Ice Sky StormCollected together in Evolution Commandos4. Earthrise5. EarthfallCollected together in Omega Threshold6. Question Zero7. One HumanCollected together in World ScarABOUT THE AUTHOR:Craig DeLancey is a writer and philosopher. His novels include the Predator Space Chronicles and Gods of Earth. He has published dozens of short stories, in places like Analog, Lightspeed, Nature Physics, Shimmer, and the Mississippi Review Online. His story "Julie Is Three" won the Analog Anlab readers choice award for short story in 2012 and is under film development by Storycom. His story "RedKing" is in several of the years best science fiction anthologies. He is also a playwright, and his plays have received staged readings and performances in New York, Los Angeles, Sydney, Melbourne, and elsewhere.You can sign up for Craigs quarterly email list at: http://eepurl.com/c-cTjLYour email address will never be shared and will only be used for quarterly updates and free fiction. www.craigdelancey.com

"Jennie Gerhardt", published in 1911, was Theodore Dreisers second novel and his first true commercial success. Today it is generally regarded as one of his three best novels, along with "Sister Carrie" and "An American Tragedy"."Jennie Gerhardt" exemplifies the naturalism of which Dreiser was a proponent, telling the unhappy story of a working-class woman who accepts all the adversity life visits on her and becomes the mistress of two wealthy and powerful men in order to help her impoverished family.

"The House of Wolfings", written in 1890 by William Morris, some argue, is a demonstration of Morris socialism as the society described, though not an utopia, is clan-based, elects leaders and makes decisions in clan tribal meetings. Notwithstanding, it tells the story of how Thiodolf and his clan - the Wolfings, men of the Mark- fight and vanquish the Roman invaders. The book is built with Morris knowledge of the historical period and his own idealistic views, which allow him to combine facts and mythical elements. Thiodolf is protected by a dwarfish coat of mail, given to him by his lover Wood Sun, herself one of the Vala, the immortals. But things are not what they seem and what are meant to protect him, but a curse...Even apart from the obvious influence this story had on Tolkien, and his masterpiece "The Lord of the Rings", its an enjoyable read. The battle scenes are well-written and the characters are interesting. A lot of detail is given regarding the land, the houses of the Mark, their histories, and even their marriage customs. Its unusual to read such convincing world-building from a book written that time.

"The Roots of the Mountains" is a novel by William Morris, which follows the Gothic theme from its predecessor, "The House of the Wolfings".Many years after the events of "The House of the Wolfings" the descendants of the Wolfing tribe live on the mountains dispersed in smaller tribes and mostly ignorant of their past. A new danger, this time the Huns, will unite them once more and force them to war in order to defend their freedom and way of life.This is the second, and last, of Morriss novels with a strong historic background. The descendants of the Wolfings live simple lives in a world of less magic and poetry than their ancestors. The story here is more complex as it follows the reunification of the tribes under a common threat. It is written almost entirely in prose with only a few songs. Once again Morris writes in his unique style immersing us in a unique tapestry of war and love embellished with fine details of nature, landscape and ancient customs.J. R. R. Tolkiens "The Lord of the Rings" was influenced by this tale of a romance that unites two long-ago peoples and of the battle to defend their freedom against invading Huns.Tolkien fans who long for more of the same delight that they get from "The Lord of the Rings" will find it in the writings of William Morris, for he created the literary style that J. R. R. Tolkien brought to such perfection in his tales.

"Ransons Folly", one of the best stories written by American author Richard Harding Davis in 1904, tells the story of the audacious, dare-devil exploits of a junior officer in the U.S. Army. His position and influence secure a lieutenancy in a Western post. The monotony of the life there and its regularity finally drive him into the folly of donning the disguise of a band of notorious highwaymen, and holding up the public coach."Ransons Folly" is also the title story in a collection of novellas which includes the well-known: The Bar Sinister; A Derelict; La Lettre DAmour; and, In The Fog.

Like all of Guy de Maupassants work, "Strong as Death" (1889) is a poignant and haunting tale. It is a tale of love, life, death, and the mystery of the human heart; a tale of an affair of the heart that cannot stand the light of day - a profane love that lasts a lifetime, and haunts from beyond the grave."Strong as Death" is great fun and the society portrait works well. The novel focuses on the narcissistic sentimentality in the obsessive romantic love between Olivier Bertin and Madame de Guilleroy.

Mary Mackay was a British novelist who began her career as a musician, adopting the name Marie Corelli for her billing. She gave up music, turning to writing instead and in 1886 published her first novel, "A Romance of Two Worlds", regarded as one of the most culturally important Victorian bestsellers."A Romance of Two Worlds" starts with a young heroine telling her story of coping with a debilitating illness that includes depression and thoughts of suicide. Her doctor is unable to help her and sends her off on a holiday where she meets a mystical character by the name of Raffaello Cellini, an Italian artist. Cellini offers her a strange potion which immediately puts her into a tranquil slumber, in which she experiences divine visions. This is the beginning of her journey to health, both spiritual and physical.In her time, Marie Corelli was the most widely read author of fiction but came under harsh criticism from many of the literary elite for her overly melodramatic and emotional writing.

"Beowulf" is the longest and most complete surviving poem in Old English. The work probably circulated orally for centuries before being written down by scribes around the year 1000. It consists of 3,182 lines of alliterative verse. The poems plot, is straightforward and has the quality of a folktale, following recognisable patterns of myth: A young hero sets out on a sea journey to battle monsters. After dispatching two humanoid horrors in deadly combat, the victorious hero journeys back home to rule his own kingdom until he finally clashes with a dragon who kills him, though he wins glory and fame. But "Beowulf" also alludes to several battles and events in the past and future, at times digressing for several lines to narrate the action of a feud, battle, or heroic event; the poems allusive, interlacing quality makes it difficult and complex.But "Beowulf" is worth the struggle. For generations, teachers and students have enjoyed this tale of dragon slaying and troll combat set against the background of human feuding and warfare among the Danes, Frisians, Jutes, Swedes, and Geats. Legendary heroes like Beowulf and Wiglaf stand toe to toe with figures from history such as Hygelac, Hrothgar, and Ingeld. Though the poem cannot be considered historically accurate in a modern sense, "Beowulf" offers an uncannily familiar window into the alliances, truces, feuds, and political intrigues taking place in the Germanic heroic world. It continues to fascinate readers also because of its expression of such prominent themes as community, religion, violence, and revenge.(Source: literacle.com)

"The King of the Mountains", a French humour classic by Edmond About, appeared in 1856, when he was twenty-eight. The scene is laid in and near contemporary Athens. The story is an animated and delightfully humorous account of the adventures befalling two English ladies and a young German scientist, who are captured and held for ransom by the redoubtable Hadgi-Stavros, king of the brigands.